Spinach Salad with Marinated Onions

Is it too predictable to start off the New Year with a recipe for salad? I’m feeling motivated to eat healthier after all of the holiday indulging, and I prefer the kind of healthy food that doesn’t feel like deprivation. I need big, bold flavors and a lot of variety to keep healthy eating interesting. This recipe checks those boxes for me. I made this spinach salad with marinated onions once and immediately started planning to make it again the same week.

The inspiration for this salad came from the marinated red onions recipe by nocrumbsleft. I changed the recipe quite a bit so that the marinated onions could double as the salad dressing.

Usually, I don’t love raw onions. But marinating them takes away that harsh flavor so they just add the perfect tangy crunch. When paired with salty feta, sweet cranberries, and crunchy pecans, this salad is full of great flavors and textures.

I used half a medium sized red onion for this salad. I like to cut the onion in half again then cut into thin slices. You can cut them into larger slices, if that’s what you prefer.

After combining the ingredients for the marinated onions, make sure to press down the onions into the marinade so that they are fully submerged. Allow the onions to marinate for at least an hour, but up to two days is fine if you’d like to make them in advance.

This spinach salad pairs well with chicken. It should serve about four as a side salad or can be an entree for two.